Involved in a reno at a house that had been closed up for 10+ years where raccoons inhabited the place.
Group latrines in a number of different locations in ceiling areas.
After drywall removal is there a recommended technique and product to coat the areas for odor removal?
Thanks.
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Apple cider vinegar, so I've read somewhere. I don't know if it will cure the smell of vomit spewed by the demolition team, though.
A La Carte Government funding... the real democracy.
Ptail posted a method awhile back that worked for me.
Fire proof your area 1st
Then
Coffee grounds in an old pan.
Set on a hotplate and burn the grounds for a couple hours.
Come back the next day and ventilate.
I did that on a reposessed house that smelled stagnant, old and ####.
8months later I still catch a coffee scent now and then but none of the old odors.
I missed that one, the first time around.That's a great idea !!!..you never know how deep a puddle is from the top......You are always welcome at Quittintime
Up here they strip out everything and then use a sandblaster type set up only it blows dry ice particles.Moves fast, leaves shop vac stuff behind and takes out animal, fire, mold, mildew, whatever.I *think* they pressurize the house, not sure.Only two times I've come in contact with it was on a Mike Holmes TV show from eastern Canada and a local artist's studio that was fire, flood from the fire dept., time to get the insurance in order. By that time mold had set in, along with the fire (char and soot, not structural, that was replaced). Insurance company paid the bill on the local one, I watched. Was way cool.
I always have good luck with 2 cups hydrogen peroxide, 2 drops dishwashing liquid and 2 teaspoons of baking powder. Increase the quanities as necessary for what ever you need. Mix the ingrediants together in your applicator of choice. It will lose it's effectiveness if stored so only mix up what you are going to use right away.
Saturate whatever stinks with it and let dry. Your problem may take a couple applications due to the severity, but it should do the trick!
For what it's worth, the above recipe has been successful on both cat and dog ####, as well as skunk spray (on sprayed dog AND human - don't ask how I know!)
Shawn
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Checker Contracting - SE Michigan
Edited 6/25/2009 1:55 pm ET by CheckerContracting
accellerant and matches.........
Kiltz original...
lots of it....
after washing up the obvious...
Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming
WOW!!! What a Ride!
Forget the primal scream, just ROAR!!!
Spray with Kilz ... it's what they use on fire jobs.
Related question.
Previous owner, big time smokers. The new owners sealed with bins, washed everything, pulled all carpet and lino. Installed hardwood throughout. Place didn't seem to have the smoke odor...............till the air cond. and fan on instead of auto. Culprit seems to be the ductword. Though it was cleaned by a reputable duct cleaner.............I guess..........the smoke film must be everywhere in there.
Any ideas on that one?
A Great Place for Information, Comraderie, and a Sucker Punch.
Remodeling Contractor just outside the Glass City.
http://www.quittintime.com/
Good point on the duct work as this place is getting a new furnace and the duct cleaning is part of the deal.
Think I'll accent the point with the dealer. One thing you don't want is to do all the labor and still have a lingering odor.
What I was hoping to hear was from someone who had good success with one of those amino acid sprays that supposedly eat the odors.
Don't know which might be worse, the isolated latrines of the coons or the total coverage of the cig smoke.
On the other hand this place had been closed up so long that the coon odors probably permeated all the drywall and not just the pockets.
This is getting serious now.
You know it's serious when you smoke and the aroma bothers you when you walk in the door.
edit: tell me more of these amino acids?
A Great Place for Information, Comraderie, and a Sucker Punch.
Remodeling Contractor just outside the Glass City.
http://www.quittintime.com/
Edited 6/25/2009 10:43 pm ET by calvin
I don't know. Seems it was amino acids or something in the elixir that bio'd the odors.
I'd heard different accounts of it over the years but never paid that much attention to it. One guy used it on his car AC that had a funky smell he couldn't get rid of.
But now with this deal going on I need something guaranteed.
I mean dropping ceilings for replacement because you peek into a ceiling area and see various spots of latrines and some are so close together you can't just cut out and patch without spending a dime to save a nickel.
At least raccoonscrap in the same area in their communal living or it might have been worse, at least theoretically.
be I remember back in the old days that a job meant you got to smell the fresh odor of cut pine or fir again.
those were the days...
be I remember back in the old days that a job meant you got to smell the fresh odor of cut pine or fir again.
those were the days...
Yup, hard not to realize it ain't all glory in our work.A Great Place for Information, Comraderie, and a Sucker Punch.
Remodeling Contractor just outside the Glass City.
http://www.quittintime.com/
Send in the trained ferrets.
Ozone generator kills organic odors like tobacco smoke, but its an oxidizing agent so it might be tough on foam rubber gaskets and exposed steel.BruceT
Is your thinking perhaps direct the ozone generation into the ductwork? If that's the case-would one run the fan to both pull in the return and disperse through the supplies?
or general ozone in the home-running the fan/pulling in air and dispensing through the ducts.
I've got to imagine this heavy smoker wasn't the only one to leave a lasting impression on a dwelling.
thanks.A Great Place for Information, Comraderie, and a Sucker Punch.
Remodeling Contractor just outside the Glass City.
http://www.quittintime.com/
Since the duct work is the suspect source of odor now, I think I'd put the ozone machine at or in the return air duct and let its fan push ozone-rich air through the system, maybe running the system fan at lowest speed from time to time.BruceT
Thanks Bruce.A Great Place for Information, Comraderie, and a Sucker Punch.
Remodeling Contractor just outside the Glass City.
http://www.quittintime.com/
I used an ozone generator on an old 51' sailboat about 4 or 5 years ago. Heavy odor from nicotine and two dead dogs. Opened everything on the interior, sealed all the exterior and let it go for a couple of days, about 40 hours total. Presto-chango worked like a champ.
Thanks Jim.
The suggestions both here and at The Wall seem to be the same. I'll pass along the information and the cautions.A Great Place for Information, Comraderie, and a Sucker Punch.
Remodeling Contractor just outside the Glass City.
http://www.quittintime.com/
burn coffee.... yep... take a large pot put it on a hot plate fill it with coffee grinds soat with water and then leave... let it burn til it's really burnt bad... til there is nothing left to burn...
within a day you'll not smell anything.... it's what the dead body clean up guy told me years ago... i've used it a few times... and it worked
p
Think when it comes time I'm going to try that.
Thanks
So let me get a more percise account of this.
In a large pot mix fresh coffee grinds as from fresh ground from bean?
to say mixed with enough water to just soak the ground beans to a paste consistancy
and put it on a hotplate at what... medium temperature range?
and let it burn down to where the grinds will be dry and burnt?
Will this be burning smoke or shall I stop short of that?
Thanks.
You mentioned amino acids that would bio the odor. I haven't heard about that technique but enzyme based cleaners are available for eliminating pet and other animal odors.
cheap no name ground coffee ..unless u like to urn the good stuff.. old 4-8qt pot.. dump in a lb or two of coffee add water maybe 2-3 cups put hot plate where it won't burn anything..place on high heat and leave it with the home sealed up best you can..let it cook til it burns..let it fill the place up with smoke and the smell of burnt coffee... just let it burn till it can;t anymore... then leave the place closed up .. til the next day.. then air it out... you might smell coffee some but thats all... think it's the oils or something
p
In this situation it is necessary to know approximately how long it might take for a pound of coffee to totally do it's burn out so then the power can be shut off to the hotplate.
Might you know the time involvement?
Thanks
be pester pester pester
cheapo grounds....
some water and boilt the snot of them into oblivian...
Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming<!----><!----><!---->
WOW!!! What a Ride!
Forget the primal scream, just ROAR!!!
"Some days it's just not worth chewing through the restraints"
boil to burn as I understand it.
be smoke in the air
boil is the 1st step to incineration....
burn is just a way point to there...
Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming<!----><!----><!---->
WOW!!! What a Ride!
Forget the primal scream, just ROAR!!!
"Some days it's just not worth chewing through the restraints"
So we are talking about an hour or so on the stove then before the process is finished?
When I did it, I left it alone for about 6hrs. About 7-8 hrs total--- I babysat it for the 1st couple.
I unplugged the hot plate and took off till the next afternoon.
Not a whole lot of smoke.... no more then when my kids make Mac&Cheese.
But I wasn't there during the heart of the work.
I also used an old CI pan so I wouldn't melt anything. A bit of an burnt acid smell at 1st the next day but went away with the vent..
Pleasent roasted coffee smell 3days later.
ok, 8 hrs then unplug.
Thanks all.
more like 6 or 7...
Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming<!----><!----><!---->
WOW!!! What a Ride!
Forget the primal scream, just ROAR!!!
"Some days it's just not worth chewing through the restraints"
quit teasing
ohtay...
Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming<!----><!----><!---->
WOW!!! What a Ride!
Forget the primal scream, just ROAR!!!
"Some days it's just not worth chewing through the restraints"
'tis quite alright, I grow accustomed. I hate being such a nitpicker asking about precision data all the time but like to cover myself ahead as much as possible to help counter Murphy's Law.
This job is rather involved and with a retiring lawyer for the Justice Dept. who works along the line of safety issues so I'm attentive.
The ol' boy isn't afraid to lace on the boots and get in there shoveling in the thick of things so all's cool
but since I'm the one presenting the game plan...
Cheers
Edited 6/29/2009 10:43 am ET by rez
Edited 6/29/2009 10:43 am ET by rez
set fire to some paper....
after it all turns to ash try and burn it again....
that should be the state the coffee grounds become...
there just isn't anything left...
Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming<!----><!----><!---->
WOW!!! What a Ride!
Forget the primal scream, just ROAR!!!
"Some days it's just not worth chewing through the restraints"
I'd call Service Master and let them take care of it. They have all the special chemicals for that kind of work. They even clean up crime scenes.
Ozone.
They used to have a portable ozonator at the resort I do a bit of work for. It killed any smells really quickly. Then Worksafe BC, our gov't workers comp, brought in rules that you couldn't go into the suites for two hours after you turned the unit off. Since that wasn't practical they had to stop using it.
The two hour rule was also applied to suites where the occupants had been smoking, to protect against second hand smoke - which was quite funny as without exception all the housekeeping staff are heavy smokers. They often light up on the porch waiting for the time to expire and the unit to be safe.
Do like the Moderators aND JUST BAN IT OR DELEETE IT.
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shellac it...
Ive hid more odor than anyone here.
As the ganster would say , Dont worry bout it .
Ive done a bunch of fire jobs because they are cheap jobs to buy. YOu kinda have to earn your livin in them. Ive bought repos with every thiing in them and yes also renters. Try a fridge left with out electric for a while and a dead cat they forgot and didnt care.
Anyway you say youre going to the studs . Dont worry bout it . Drywall covers all evidence . Paint does too.
Normally when you get all fabric out of the house you got it . Carpet , drapes , clothes , open insulation, etc. Anything porus to smell.
Edited 8/19/2009 8:08 am by Mooney
Only dropped the drywall ceilings in the worst areas to discover copper water lines that had been pulled out of their fittings so the plumber will love me.
Decided to drop them as with a flashlight I could see rodent chews on the wiring. Funny that they only liked the outer casing and left the black and white alone.
Figger either they once tried one and got zapped or a different chemical component between the two material types and the inner wrap was too bitter for them. I dunno, not my job.
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